TESTING

03/27/2015

For many employers interested in maintaining a safe and productive workplace, it doesn’t make sense to require pre-employment drug and alcohol screening or randomly make current employees provide urine or blood samples. That was the contrarian advice attorney James P. Reidy offered March 24 at the Society for Human Resource Management Employment Law & Legislative Conference.

03/09/2015

Do you explain upfront exactly how your hiring process works? If not, consider providing a written notice that outlines the process, especially if it’s a lengthy one and you collect applications even when you have no current openings. This may come in handy later if a disgruntled applicant sues, claiming she was blacklisted or suffered discrimination by not being called for an interview or otherwise being considered for a position.

12/29/2014

The hiring stakes are particularly high for small businesses. That’s why about two-thirds of small business owners reported in a recent survey that they ask job candidates to undergo drug tests before being hired.

04/30/2014

Some jobs are so safety-sensitive that employers are required to perform drug and alcohol tests on employees. For example, Department of Trans­­por­­ta­­tion regulations require regular tests for commercial truck drivers. But what if an employee can’t produce a urine sample?

10/10/2013

Q.We make offers to applicants contingent on passing a physical examination. As a part of the examination the doctor asks for a medical history, including questions about the applicant’s family medical history. We have heard that we should not ask about the applicant’s family medical history, but we aren’t sure if that’s true. Should we not ask for this information?

10/02/2013

The Austin Fire Department has stopped hiring candidates from its 2012 candidate list now that the EEOC has declared that its hiring test discriminated against black and Hispanic candidates. The EEOC pointed to disparities in pass rates between the groups.

08/07/2013

07/23/2013

You are free to tell employees they can be terminated for having marijuana in their systems and then randomly test for the substance. That’s true even if a doctor recommends that the employee use medical marijuana.

06/03/2013

The DOJ has reached a settlement with the city of Corpus Christi, resolving claims that the city police department’s hiring test violated Title VII. The DOJ charged that from 2005 to 2011, the police depart­­ment used a physical abilities test that unlawfully screened out female applicants for entry-level police officer positions.

05/14/2013

04/03/2013

The NYPD has agreed to a settlement in a disability discrimination case filed by the U.S. Department of Justice. An applicant for a school crossing guard position had filed the complaint and later sued, alleging that the NYPD required a physical examination im­­mediately upon completion of a job application.

01/16/2013

Every company wants managers who can efficiently identify, define and resolve problems. Don’t assume that management applicants with top references and experience have great analytical skills. Instead, find out for yourself by asking some of these questions.